Subtle moves by some influence peddlers at the Food and Drugs Board (FDB) to crucify Dr Alex Dodoo, the Board Chairman, to pave way for some ‘deals’ he would not stand for, has started falling flat as issues by the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) in a purported FDB Audit Report have vindicated the FDB boss. Information reaching The Weekend Crusading Guide gathered from SFO revealed that on Wednesday, 2 December, 2009, Dr. Alex Dodoo, on his volition; went with his lawyers to SFO office in Accra and was told the officer in-charge was not available. Again, Dr Dodoo, who is unaware of the plot by these influence peddlers, according to sources, went on Thursday with his lawyer, Yony Kulendi, where he was informed that the SFO wanted to speak to him because of “an issue” in the FDB audit report. “Although the SFO would not hand him a copy of the audit report, they read from it that a section of the FDB audit report 2006-2008 said that ‘management funded the trips of non-workers and foreign nationals," the source said. According to insiders, Dr Dodoo was told by the SFO that “management did not explain why they spent about US$1900 on him for a trip in October 2008 but he explains that he was not the chairman of FDB then.” Still on the trip, the insider told newsmen that Dr Dodoo did not ask to financed in respect of the trip but rather, “FDB pleaded for him to go with them to seek to host the global pharmacovigilance meeting in Ghana in 2010 based on the fact that he is a leading expert on pharmacovigilance, as a result of which the deal was successful.” The source continued, “The management at FDB refuses to cooperate with the governing board and decisions are being taken to the detriment of the country so somebody wants him out of the way so their dirty deals could go on unnoticed.” Findings established that it was the fear that a distinguished, international figure like Dr Dodoo would always insist on the right thing being done which had given rise to the rough tactics being employed to kick him out. With his appointment as Head of the Global Outreach Secretariat for the WHO programme for International Drug Monitoring, FDB sources indicated, the smear campaign as well as the lies and accusations directed at Dr Dodoo were no doubt, to tarnish his international image, a move The Weekend Crusading Guide learnt he had vowed to fight against. It will be recalled that under the banner headline “Attempts to vilify Health Crusader Backfire” Dr. Dodoo Under Siege’, the Monday, 30 November, 2009 edition of the newspaper reported, “….though he was neither a staff member nor served on the previous FDB Board, a letter dated November 24, 2009 and signed by Dr Benjamin Kumbuor, Minister of Health in part reads’… the Serious Fraud Office is investigating certain transactions that took place at the Food and Drugs Board and has come across information which suggests that the Chairman of the FDB has been involved in actions which were detrimental to the Board and may have led to losses’. It was against this backdrop that Doctor Alex Dodoo, together with his lawyers, went to SFO only to be asked “funny” questions, some of which, The Weekend Newspaper gathered, did not relate to the subject matter. Source: Ernest Addo/The Weekend Crusading Guide/Ghana